Samuel Logenstein has been a Skipper at Sea Harvest for 20 years and leads his crew on board the Harvest Saldanha with a wealth of experience and passion. “We pride ourselves in bringing in the best quality fish,” he says, adding that, “it’s all about how you catch and process. I make sure that we keep to the Standard Operating Procedures.” His leadership has not gone unnoticed and last year Samuel, together with his crew, won the coveted internal staff prize: ‘Heroes of the Sea’ for First Place Team, as well as two additional fresh fish fleet prizes for the best hygiene and for producing the least third grade product. On board his crew call him Skipper but in Saldanha, colleagues know him as Sammy and his fellow skippers have nicknamed him “Grysie” because of his grey hair.
Samuel began his fishing career 30 years ago on a cadet programme at another fishing outfit, working his way up to a First Mate position. He joined Sea Harvest in 1995 and qualified as a Skipper a year later. For ten years he was Skipper on board the Harvest Nicola at Sea Harvest’s Namibian operation before he transferred to Saldanha where he began to lead the crew on board the Harvest Saldanha.
Career highlights for the 49 year old Skipper include a trip to New Zealand to fetch the vessel he has Skippered for the past ten years; the Harvest Saldanha. On their 29 day journey back to South Africa the crew on board experienced horrendous weather off the coast of Australia. “I remember the feeling of relief when we got back to the well-known waters of the Cape,” says Samuel. Another highlight was a trip to Denmark in 2014 where he went to a Fishing Exhibition to learn about the latest developments in how nets, doors and fishing gear are operated. He also had the opportunity to view live model simulations in flume tanks, demonstrating what effects different currents make to the trawl and spread of the nets.
When Samuel is not at sea he enjoys spending quality time with his family at home in Kraaifontein, or travelling with his wife around South Africa. Both of his children are following in his seafaring footsteps. His 25-year-old son is also at Sea Harvest, working as a Deck Hand on board the Harvest Krotoa, and his 20-year-old daughter plans to work aboard a luxury cruise liner once she has qualified as a beautician. Their aspirations for a life at sea come as no surprise, considering how much their father loves his job. “I can’t see myself doing anything else,” he says.
Samuel was nominated as Skipper of the Month by Sea Harvest Fleet Operations Manager Anthony Castle who said: “The way that Samuel operates plays a huge role in the vessel’s success. He comes across as a responsible and level-headed person who embraces a good set of values, which is already a winning recipe. He respects his crew and the crew respects him and this is why they perform very well.”